1 Ghz Albook AC brick problem

[katsch]

approx 5mins after i plug it, i lose the LED light and and thereby AC power. it must therefore run on spare battery power.

first time this happened last night, the battery got almost fully drained as i was already dozing off.

was trying to burn something on iDVD and almost lost one disc. luckily it was still encoding and not on stage 4 (burning) yet.

double checked AC wall socket by exchanging the TV source and the one i was using and there was nothing wrong with the socket.

does it automatically shut off for some reason? i am positive that the battery wasn't fully charged yet so it really shouldn't.

thanks to anyone who might have a clue to what this is.

[opd]

one possibility i can think of...

after using many powerbook models starting with the ancient powerbook 100, i have found the AC power connector (what you insert into the side or back of your laptop) to be the most ginger/prone to damage.

If the power brick itself is not kaput, perhaps some internal wire for this connector got loose by the constant bending, flexing, etc? the electricians here at the building and at the former RM Plus (VCM Bytes?) have fixed 3 or 4 of my power bricks for this reason. Just last week, my old Ericsson T39m (yes, still alive, resetting once in a while) cell phone charger had the exact same problem. Once again, electrician to the rescue: "cut and paste" repair uli.

[katsch]

thanks for the reply, opd!

am back in manila and the albook now running like it is supposed to. the problem began while i was working in my room at the Cebu Waterfront Hotel just two nights ago.

texted senco's erwin reyes who said that it may have been 'dirty' hotel power. otherwise he also suggested calibrating one's battery by fully draining it at least once a month.